


Man's Best Friend

by Dont_touch_the_phlebotinum



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Established Relationship, Fluff, Human Loki, M/M, SO MUCH FLUFF
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-26
Updated: 2015-10-26
Packaged: 2018-04-28 08:08:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5084500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dont_touch_the_phlebotinum/pseuds/Dont_touch_the_phlebotinum
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bringing a stray home doesn't usually end this well.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Man's Best Friend

**Author's Note:**

  * For [plastic_cello](https://archiveofourown.org/users/plastic_cello/gifts).



> Sorry this has taken me about two months longer to write than it should have done. I am the worst.

The weather had taken a turn for the worse in the last few days. Barely a day after Loki had foolishly remarked upon how this year's glorious summer was stretching well into September, the temperature had dropped, cloudless blue skies replaced with grey, and New York City had been subjected to a deluge. Loki had found himself drenched just in the time it had taken to hail a cab as he'd left the office, his umbrella rendered useless by the driving winds, and in the hour's drive home — if spending much of that time sitting in traffic could be considered a drive — he hadn't even come close to drying off.

As soon as he'd paid the driver Loki darted back out into the rain, crossing the sidewalk as quickly as possible until he reached the sanctuary of his building's front lobby. The room was unsurprisingly empty; nobody with any shred of sense was heading outside tonight unless they had a damn good reason to. Loki hurried towards the elevators, careful to avoid the puddles left by the building's similarly sodden inhabitants, and grimaced at the overwhelming stench of wet dog that hit him as the elevator doors opened.

Delightful. Any other day Loki would have turned and headed for the stairwell rather than spend even thirty seconds breathing in that musty air, but at the end of yet another stressful week at work, when he was damp and cold and uncomfortable, Loki wanted nothing more than to be home as soon as possible. Even with the risk that he'd be stepping into an empty apartment.

Things at home had been... strained of late. Bucky had always been somewhat frustrated by how much time Loki spent at the office, despite having been well aware of the hours Loki worked when they'd first started dating, though recently things seemed to have reached a head. He suspected the fact that his firm had been bought out by Stark Industries, putting him in close working proximity with the company's CEO, who happened to be Loki's ex, played no small part in that. He could only pray that when the upheaval settled down and things returned to normal at work he'd have a relationship left to fix at home.

Well, perhaps that was a little melodramatic. He and Bucky had hit a rocky patch, but things weren't bad enough yet to throw away more than two years together over it. Loki hoped.

He frowned when he stepped out of the elevator at his floor. The smell was still lingering in the hall, not as pronounced as in the cramped elevator carriage, but definitely still there. He lived on the top floor of a converted factory; there was only one other apartment on this floor, and Loki was fairly sure its occupants didn't own any pets.

But then, Loki never did have much to do with his neighbours, so he supposed it was entirely possible that they had bought a dog since the last time Loki had crossed paths with them. He shrugged it off and unlocked his front door, though he only made it one step inside before stopping short.

"Bucky," Loki called, without taking his eyes off the dog sat dripping water onto his hardwood floors and staring back at him. Despite his earlier concerns, it was safe to say Bucky was home.

He stuck his head through the kitchen doorway at the sound of Loki's voice. "Oh, hey," he said casually, before stepping back into the main room and setting a desert bowl filled with water on the floor.

"Hey," Loki mimicked, his sarcastic smile disappearing as he looked back to the dog now merrily drinking at Bucky's feet. "Care to explain?"

"I found him eating out of a trash can a few blocks from here." He crouched down as he spoke and scratched at the dog's ears while its tail started wagging gently in response.

"And that was reason enough to bring it home?"

"Well I couldn't leave him out there in this, could I?" Bucky replied, jerking his head towards the rain still pounding at the windows.

Loki shook his head, finally remembering himself enough to close the door behind him and shrug off his sodden overcoat. "Why didn't you take it to a shelter?"

"Oh, come on; we all know what happens to shelter animals they can't find a home for," Bucky said, indignation in his voice, and Loki rolled his eyes. He really shouldn't have been surprised. If anything, it was probably more surprising that Bucky had never done this before. "Besides, there's probably some poor family out there looking for this guy right now."

Loki found that hard to believe, somehow. The dog was a mutt — Loki couldn't begin to guess how many different breeds had gone into it — its coat matted in places and dried mud caking its feet. It didn't look in too bad shape, though, for a stray; if it had been abandoned, it didn't look like it could have been living on the streets for too long. Yet still Bucky looked at it like it was the most special creature on the planet.

"I'm sure they'll have a much easier time finding it now it's in our apartment."

"I was gonna stick up some posters when the rain eases off," Bucky replied, "let people know where they can find him."

Loki arched an eyebrow. "And where will that be?" he said, though he had a nasty feeling he already knew the answer.

And sure enough, Bucky shot him a pleading look in response.

"No."

"Loki—"

"No way," Loki went on before Bucky could get out whatever argument he could possibly make on why they should keep a stray in their home. "We don't even know if that thing is housebroken, Bucky. It could have fleas. It could have rabies, for all we know."

Bucky scoffed. "He's been here for the past hour and he's been good as gold — and rabies free," he said, still running his hand over the dog's coat while it nuzzled against him affectionately, as if it was trying to prove Bucky's point. "Where else is he supposed to go?"

"Anywhere. Literally anywhere else."

Bucky just stared back at Loki, his jaw set, squaring himself for a fight, and Loki closed his eyes. He wanted to change out of these damp clothes; he wanted to eat dinner; he wanted to climb into his warm bed at a reasonable hour for a change. He didn't want to waste his evening on another argument.

With a sigh, Loki relented. "Two days," he said, and Bucky beamed. "It goes first thing Monday morning."

He crossed the room towards the bedroom while Bucky scrambled up to his feet again to follow him. "You're a good man, Loki," he said from the doorway, his voice muffled slightly as Loki finally pulled a dry shirt over his head. "Don't let anybody tell you different."

"I seem to remember you being the one to tell me different this morning."

As soon as the words left him Loki regretted them. He'd just agreed to let a stray dog run roughshod over their apartment for a weekend just to avoid one fight, and now he was looking to dredge back up another? Idiot.

He'd fully expected Bucky to stick to his guns and call Loki a selfish jerk all over again, but instead when Loki glanced over his shoulder at him he was staring sheepishly at his feet, hands thrust into his pockets and a self-conscious smile on his face. "Yeah," he said softly when he met Loki's eyes, "sorry about that."

They were quiet for a moment while Loki finished changing, and as he tossed his clothes into the laundry basket and turned to head back out of the bedroom Bucky spoke again.

"I saved you some dinner."

Loki blinked. Even before the chaos at work he ended up eating takeout alone in his office most nights, not getting home until long after Bucky had given up on waiting for him and gone to bed. A home-cooked meal had been a rare luxury since he'd left his parents' house. "You did?"

"Well I figured if you didn't want it, it'd keep 'til tomorrow night," Bucky shrugged. "It's only pasta."

Of course it was. A fond smile spread across Loki's face, and he stopped by the kitchen door to glance back at Bucky. "You know, one of these days you're really going to need to learn how to cook something else."

Bucky did make great pasta, though. Loki returned from the kitchen with his heated up leftovers a few minutes later to find Bucky sat at the dining table with his laptop open in front of him, typing away while Loki took a seat opposite and dived in without bothering to wait for his food to cool down first. "Sounds like the rain's clearing out," Bucky said, and Loki hummed in agreement, the tomato sauce burning his tongue keeping him from offering a more eloquent response. "I'll grab some bits for the dog while I'm out sticking up these posters."

Loki had been frowning at the dog sat at his side eyeing his plate while Bucky had carried on speaking, but at those words his head shot back round to Bucky. "We aren't keeping it," Loki reminded him over the sound of the printer roaring to life across the room.

"We still gotta feed him." Bucky shut off his computer and headed over to the printer, gathering up his keys and wallet and jacket as he went, and all the while the dog's gaze never left him. It finally abandoned Loki's side to follow Bucky when he made his way to the front door, and Bucky turned back to face it with a smile.

"I'll be back in an hour or two," he said. Loki had no idea if Bucky was speaking to him or the dog. He reached down to stroke the dog's head as it continued to stare up at him. "You behave yourself for Loki."

"It'll be spending the night on the terrace if it doesn't."

"Ah, don't listen to him."

Bucky shot Loki a smile before stepping out into the hall, and the moment he'd closed the door behind him the dog let out a soft whine. It plopped itself down, staring at the closed door as if it was trying to will Bucky to return.

Its attachment was understandable, Loki supposed. Even if Bucky hadn't been likely the first person to show the dog any affection in some time, he had a strange charm to him that seemed to suck in just about everyone he crossed paths with. Children, animals, you name it; they all fell victim to that twinkly-eyed smile of his. Bucky had even managed to endear himself to Loki's father somehow, and that man had never had a kind word to say about anyone Loki had brought home before.

Loki smiled to himself at the memory of his father's disbelieving expression as he'd announced that he liked Bucky, and stood to clear away his things. The dog was still sat by the front door when he returned.

"I know," Loki said when it looked back at him sadly. "I love him, too."

Oh God, he was actually making conversation with a dog. Bucky was such a bad influence on him.

With a shake of his head Loki sank down onto the couch and stared forward absently for a moment. His usual fourteen-hour days left him little time to do anything but crawl straight into bed when he returned home from work; he didn't know quite what to do with himself now.

But he wasn't the only one at a loss, it seemed. The dog had followed Loki to the couch and curled up at his feet, the occasional whine still leaving it. It spent the next few hours like that, wandering around aimlessly before settling back down beside Loki, its eyes shooting to the door at every tiny noise from outside, until it was time to start the whole routine over again, and at the sound of Bucky's key in the door the dog went scrabbling across the room to greet him as he stepped back inside.

"Hey," Bucky said, leaning down to make a fuss of the dog as it buzzed around his legs. He seemed about as thrilled to see the dog as it was to have him back. "I got you something, bud."

Loki stood up just in time to narrowly avoid the blur skittering past him to chase after the tennis ball Bucky had thrown across the room, and as he looked back at Bucky his eyes landed on the heavy-looking bags in his hand. "What the hell have you been buying?"

He didn't give Bucky time to answer before he was joining him at the table and rooting through the bags himself. Dog bowls, a handful of different toys, a collar and leash... he should have known.

"Before you say anything," Bucky started when Loki levelled him with his most unimpressed glare, "I figured Steve and Peggy could use all this stuff for theirs once we don't need it anymore."

A soft thud at Loki's feet drew his attention away before he could respond, and he looked down at the dog watching him expectantly, its ball placed in front of Loki.

"I don't want that," he said, though the words had about as much effect as he'd expected them to.

"Doesn't look like you've got much choice."

Bucky shot Loki a grin as Loki scowled at him, before disappearing into the kitchen to stow away his shopping and leaving Loki with that bloody dog that still wouldn't stop staring at him.

"Look, where's Bucky gone?" Loki said. "Go irritate him."

Nothing.

Loki gritted his teeth. "Fine," he huffed, and picked up the ball, grimacing at its dampness as he hurled it through the open bedroom doorway. The dog went trotting off after it triumphantly.

"So I see you two have been bonding," Bucky said as it returned and dropped the ball at Loki's feet again.

Loki glanced up at Bucky leaning against the kitchen doorframe watching him with a smile. "I'm going to bed," he said rather than respond, switching off the news report he'd only been half watching before carrying on towards the bedroom. "Are you staying up for a while?"

"Nah," Bucky replied around a perfectly timed yawn, and headed across the room behind Loki. "Remember when we used to spend our Friday nights out partying?"

Loki let out a huff of laughter in response. "I always swore I'd leave you the moment we turned into an old married couple."

"Not gonna, are you?" Bucky's tone was joking, though when Loki looked back at him there was a tiny hint of concern in his eyes.

"I haven't decided yet," Loki shrugged, and shot Bucky a grin before disappearing into the bathroom.

That had been a mistake, as it turned out.

"Oh, you've got to be joking," he said when he stepped out of the bathroom to find the dog lying content on the foot of the bed. He turned to Bucky, stood with his back to them as he pulled on his pyjama pants. "Did you encourage this?"

Bucky glanced over his shoulder to see what Loki was talking about, smiling as if it was charming rather than absolutely filthy. "Come on, bud," he said, coaxing the dog off the mattress. "Dogs sleep on the floor, not the bed."

It would never settle on their cold wood floor, though, not when it could curl up on the bed with Loki and Bucky. Loki sighed and went searching through the closet in search of a blanket. "Here," he said once he'd found one, "sleep on this."

He folded the blanket into a makeshift bed beside their own, standing back while the dog gave it an investigatory sniff and finally climbed onto it to make itself comfortable. Bucky was struggling to fight a smile when Loki looked back up at him.

"Not a word," Loki said, and Bucky held his hands up in surrender, that knowing look still twinkling in his eyes, as he backed away into the bathroom.

By the time Loki had got changed and climbed into bed Bucky was back and making himself comfortable beside him. They had never been particularly cuddly sleepers, but tonight Bucky curled in close, pressing a gentle kiss to Loki's cheek as he said goodnight.

"What was that for?"

Bucky shrugged. "Just wanted to," he said. "Do I have to have a reason?"

"I suppose not." Loki shifted on his side to face Bucky, his hand sliding into Bucky's hair while he kissed him in return, deeper this time, Loki's blood heating as they moved closer.

"Are you tired?" Bucky said once he'd pulled back from Loki's lips, his voice dropping an octave, as if Loki couldn't already tell what he was thinking. As if Loki wasn't thinking the same himself.

"Oh, I think I have some energy to spare."

Bucky grinned and caught Loki's lips again, purpose fuelling his actions now as he rolled back, pulling Loki with him until Loki was lying on top of him. Loki's mouth travelled everywhere; Bucky's lips, his neck, his jaw, tasting him like he'd been starved of it. In a way, he had been. It had been far too long since they'd had time for each other like this.

But just as Loki was sliding down to brush his lips over Bucky's toned chest he caught sight of the dog from the corner of his eye, resting its chin on the mattress and staring at them too intently for comfort. Loki's head snapped up at the sight.

"What is it?" Bucky said.

"It's watching us."

"So just ignore him."

He pulled Loki back down, though as they kissed again, bodies slowly grinding against one another, Loki could still feel a pair of oversized brown eyes on him.

"It's no good," Loki said after a moment, pulling back. "I can't do it."

Bucky sighed while Loki moved away to curl on his side, and after a few seconds Bucky slotted himself in behind him. "You're ridiculous, Loki," he said softly, pressing a kiss to Loki's shoulder blade before they settled in to go to sleep.

The last thing Loki heard before drifting off was the scrabble of claws as the dog jumped back up onto the mattress.

***

Bucky was already out of bed when Loki woke the next morning. It was no surprise; he had always been an early riser, leftover military discipline that Loki had never been able to match himself. There was no sign of the dog either, which was far more of a comfort than waking up without Bucky at his side.

It would be too much to hope the dog was gone for good, though, and sure enough, by the time Loki had showered and was just taking a seat at the dining table to eat breakfast the front door opened and Bucky stepped back inside the apartment with it in tow. As soon as he undid its leash it came trotting towards Loki to greet him, and reluctantly Loki reached down to pat its head.

"Morning," Bucky said, far too brightly for this time of day, and Loki only managed a grunt in response before gulping down the last of his coffee. It would take another cup before he felt anything close to human. Luckily for him, Bucky knew him too well, sinking down onto the chair beside him and reaching for the coffee pot to refill Loki's mug before Loki could even summon the brainpower to move his hand.

His gratitude didn't last long, however.

"Hey," he said in indignation as Bucky helped himself to a slice of toast from Loki's plate.

Bucky shrugged in response. "I'm hungry."

"Then make your own sodding breakfast."

He didn't bother to snatch it back, though, and Bucky grinned, shoving as much food into his mouth in one bite as he could in case Loki changed his mind.

"You going to work today?" Bucky said around his mouthful of toast. He already looked resigned to hear Loki's answer.

It was to be expected, Loki supposed. Most weekends he did find himself dragged back to the office on some urgent business, and there was probably already a stack of paperwork sitting on his desk demanding his attention, but Loki shook his head all the same. This weekend he had a point to prove.

Bucky didn't bother to mask the surprise on his face. "Well in that case," he said, reaching across the table for a slip of paper pinned under his laptop and slapping it down in front of Loki, "you can go do the grocery shopping. It's about time you earned your keep around here."

"Earned my keep?" Loki repeated as Bucky grinned back at him. "You seem to be forgetting who pays the rent, Barnes."

Bucky's smile widened in response and he pushed himself out of his chair, leaning through the open kitchen door to fetch a mug and pour himself a cup of coffee. His t-shirt rode up as he stretched for the sugar pot and Loki's eyes fell to the sliver of exposed skin until Bucky straightened again.

"So what about you?" he said. "What are your plans for the day?"

"That giant pile of laundry neither of us has bothered to do for weeks is my plan for today," Bucky replied while he spooned an eye-watering amount of sugar into his drink. How he had any teeth left was beyond Loki. "You can give me a hand if you like."

Loki groaned. "Let's just buy new clothes," he said, and Bucky laughed as he brought his mug to his lips. That was how he'd made it through university, after all. "Is my grey shirt still in the laundry, by the way? I haven't seen it for a while."

"Have you washed it recently?"

"No."

"Then it'll be in there."

Just as Loki nodded he felt something heavy drop into his lap, and he glanced down to see the dog resting its chin on his thigh and looking up at him with that same mournful expression it always seemed to wear. It was a fairly pathetic creature, granted, but this display was taking it to extremes. Of course, someone like Bucky would fall hook, line and sinker for it, but Loki's heart remained firmly unmelted.

"Oh for goodness' sake," Loki said. "What do you want now?"

"You should take it as a compliment — he likes you. Somebody should."

Loki chose to ignore Bucky's last remark, and the grin on his face Loki could see in his peripheral vision. "Well I don't like it," Loki said instead, glaring down at the dog still staring at him. Its tail wagged in response, and Loki threw a hand up in frustration.

"We should figure out something to call him."

"No we should not," Loki said quickly, his eyes shooting back to Bucky sat watching them.

"Why not?"

"Because once it has a name, you're going to want to keep it."

"I already want to keep him," Bucky replied, as if that fact wasn't painfully obvious.

"Yes, I had guessed as much."

Bucky shot Loki a sad look to rival the dog's, and Loki huffed in response. There was no way he was going to be guilt-tripped into getting a dog — and certainly not the smelly, irritating one that had taken over their apartment. He got to his feet and carried his plate out into the kitchen — partly just to avoid Bucky's gaze — before snatching up the shopping list from the table and heading out of the apartment.

Once he'd closed the door behind him Loki looked over the list, and a disbelieving laugh bubbled up from his chest. Almost the entire list was made up of microwave meals and junk food. Honestly, how had Bucky even survived this long? Loki scrunched up the list and tossed it before stepping into the elevator. He'd decide what to buy once he got to the store — and no doubt Bucky would object to every single thing he'd come home with.

Sure enough, when Loki returned home a couple of hours later Bucky looked up from the pile of dirty laundry taking up most of the kitchen floor to peer suspiciously at the bags Loki set on the counter. "What's all that?" he said as Loki began to unload his shopping.

"It may be unfamiliar to you in its non-processed form," Loki replied, his mother's voice echoing in his ears, "but this is food. See this?" He held up a bag of spring greens. "It's called a 'vegetable.'"

Bucky rolled his eyes. "You're such a jerk, Loki," he said affectionately.

"Didn't they teach you about nutrition in the army? How eating well would help you become the best soldier you can be, and all that?"

He snorted in response. "Have you ever eaten an MRE? They're worse than getting shot at. Besides," he added while he turned back to finish loading the washing machine, "isn't the healthy eating lecture a little rich coming from you? How many nights have you had takeout for dinner this week?"

"Well not tonight. You and I are going to cook ourselves a proper meal, like adults."

Bucky smirked back at him. "What happened, your mom tear you a new one again?"

Loki's dietary habits were a frequent topic of conversation when he visited his parents, though he'd long since learned to drown out his mother's lectures, smiling sweetly to convince her she was getting through to him before continuing to do what he wanted anyway. But if Bucky was the one to face Loki's mother's wrath he certainly wouldn't find it so amusing.

"Here," he said, tossing Bucky a bag of red vines. "My one and only concession. Heathen."

"Twizzlers are not better," Bucky shot back, too busy tearing into the packet to look back up at Loki. They'd had this discussion enough times for him to see it coming a mile off.

If only trying to decide which was the superior confectionary was still the biggest problem they had.

Bucky seemed to have been thinking the same thing. "I've missed this," he said, "just talking about bullshit."

Loki nodded, a fond smile spreading across his face at the memory of all the utterly pointless things he and Bucky would find themselves discussing as if they were vital topics of conversation. They hadn't had time to discuss much of anything recently. "It has been a while," he replied, stowing away the rest of the groceries before running his fingers tenderly through Bucky's hair as he passed him to head back into the living room.

He settled in on the couch with a book Bucky had brought him for Christmas the year before, which he still hadn't managed to get more than a few chapters in to, and after a while Bucky sank down beside him. The citrusy smell of washing powder still clung to his skin, strong enough to tickle the inside of Loki's nose and leave the dog sneezing at their feet. But it didn't stop the damn thing from hopping up to curl on Bucky's other side, not wanted to be left out.

Loki glanced over the top of his book as Bucky reached down to scratch the dog's head resting on his lap, and he shook his head. He didn't bother to say anything, though. What would be the point? It was becoming increasingly apparent that he had no authority in this house.

But it was only for the weekend, he told himself yet again. He could put up with it until Monday.

"How's Steve?" Loki said. It had been a while since he'd heard Bucky mention what his best friend was getting up to these days.

"Yeah, he's fine," Bucky replied. "Still no luck on the baby front."

"I'm surprised he and Peggy haven't considered fostering. With the two of you growing up in care you would think he'd be keen to give a loving home to a child in the same situation."

Bucky hummed in thought, still absently scratching at the dog's ears while it closed its eyes and nuzzled closer against him. It looked like there was no greater bliss than having Bucky's affections. That was a sentiment Loki could get on board with, actually.

"So does that mean you're going to adopt a litter of kids one day?"

"Well I imagine the two of us would struggle to conceive naturally."

They'd never really discussed the possibility of children in their future. Bucky would no doubt be all for it, though Loki wasn't so sure. Certainly money was no issue, but Loki's hectic working hours showed no signs of abating any time soon, and he had no desire to relive his father's mistakes, devoting more time to his work than his children.

"Though there's plenty of problems with adopting too, I guess," Bucky said as he glanced back at Loki. "Just look what your folks ended up with."

Loki tried his best to keep his face impassive. It was no easy task with Bucky grinning at him the way he was. "Ever the comedian, Barnes," he said, looking back down at his book again as he feigned disinterest.

"All right, we know when we're not wanted," Bucky said, and turned to the dog. "Shall we go for a walk, buddy?"

The dog jumped back down onto the floor while Bucky stood, understanding every word Bucky had said to it, judging by the way it waited anxiously by the front door for Bucky to finish getting ready.

"I'll go with you," Loki said as Bucky slid his coat on.

He looked back at Loki in surprise. "Yeah?"

"I might as well," he shrugged. It felt like so long since he'd been able to spend any time with Bucky, sacrificing a few hours of having a blissfully dog-free apartment was a worthy trade-off for getting to enjoy Bucky's company.

Setting his book down on the coffee table again, Loki rounded the couch to fetch his own jacket while Bucky attached the dog's leash. "Care to do the honours?" he said, holding the leash for Loki to take.

He should have known he was going to regret this.

Loki shot Bucky a look, but reluctantly he took the leash from Bucky's hand anyway and followed him out of the apartment. He could always find a way to accidentally let go of the leash while they were out, he supposed. In the path of an oncoming truck, perhaps. Yet as he stared down at Bucky, crouching in the elevator to give the dog yet another fuss and looking happier than Loki had seen him in far too long, he knew he could never do that to him.

Still, it was a nice thought.

"There's a dog run about five blocks this way," Bucky said once they'd stepped out onto the street outside their building, already turning in that direction while the dog pulled in Loki's hand to follow him. Loki didn't budge, though.

He raised an eyebrow as he stared back at Bucky. "So you've been scoping local dog parks, have you? How long exactly have you been plotting to conveniently stumble across a stray dog to take in?"

"I pass it on my way to work," Bucky replied with a smile, and he hooked his arm with Loki's while they set off walking down the block. The dog happily trotted along a few steps ahead, looking back every second or two to make sure Loki and Bucky were still there. "Pretty handy though," Bucky went on, completely devoid of subtlety, "having a park so close."

"We're not getting a dog, Bucky."

"Give me one good reason why we shouldn't." He paused beside Loki when the dog came to a sudden halt to sniff obsessively at a parking meter. "And no, you being a miserable person is not a good enough reason."

"All right," Loki said, "what happens when you and I are both at work? We can't keep a dog alone in the apartment all day."

Bucky nodded, considering for a moment while the dog finally finished investigating and started moving once more, pulling at its leash as if Loki was the one causing the hold up. After another handful of steps, it decided to pause again.

Loki was going to have a breakdown before they even reached this damned park.

"I could probably take it to work with me," Bucky said once they'd set off again. "It could be like a therapy dog."

"You would trust a bunch of trigger-happy trauma sufferers around a dog?"

He'd expected a few choice insults in return for that remark — and no doubt would have received them had he said as much in one of their more heated exchanges — though if his comment had offended Bucky he didn't show it. Instead he simply studied Loki for a moment while Loki watched from the corner of his eye, the rest of his attention focused on making sure none of them got hit by a wayward cab as they crossed the road.

"You have no idea what PTSD really does to a person, do you?" he said, though there was no anger in his voice. He barely even sounded exasperated.

"I've been trying to forget."

He and Bucky hadn't been together during Bucky's time in the military, but they had known each other in passing through friends of friends, and the memory of how badly affected Bucky had been by his experiences after his final tour in Afghanistan had stayed with Loki to this day. Even in the fledgling stages of their relationship, there had been nights Bucky would wake in terror, shaking and sobbing in Loki's arms until he'd realise he was safe at home. It was still a struggle to reconcile the optimistic, largely carefree man that stood beside him with the withdrawn shell of himself he had been back then.

Bucky shot Loki a small smile at that, well aware of where Loki's thoughts had headed, and they carried on in silence until they stepped through the gates to the dog run. It was fairly quiet — or so Loki presumed; he didn't know how busy one should expect a moderately-sized dog run to be on a Saturday afternoon at this time of year — a dozen or so dogs trotting about while their owners sat on the benches scattered through the park or just wandered along under the shelter of the trees.

"Smells like fall," Bucky said, as he buttoned up his peacoat to ward off the wind that had been picking up until now it seemed to cut right through them. Loki wasn't often one to feel the cold, but even he was beginning to wish he'd brought a pair of gloves with him.

"Now what exactly does fall smell like?"

"Smell that?" he replied while they descended the stone steps that led to the grassy area of the park, gesturing to the air around them as if the scent was a distinct entity he could point out. "Fall."

Loki smiled despite himself. There was a crispness to the air that felt decidedly autumnal, the first signs of red and orange creeping into the trees that lined the park and fluttering to the ground with every gust of wind. He'd give it two days before Bucky started planning for Halloween.

His smile soon shifted into a frown when Bucky leant down to let the dog off its leash. That didn't seem wise. "Aren't you worried it's going to go running off and get lost somewhere?"

Bucky looked back at him with arched eyebrows. "Are you?"

"I don't want to spend the rest of the day searching for a dog that doesn't even belong to us, that's all," Loki shrugged, shoving his hands into his pockets and pointedly ignoring the grin on Bucky's face. The park was enclosed, of course, but there were still plenty of spots the dog could wriggle its way into where Loki and Bucky would lose sight of it, and it only needed one careless person to leave the main gate open for the dog to slip out onto the street.

Luckily it seemed the dog didn't have much interest in straying far from them. It headed off in front, running back and forth to sniff at trees and other dogs, though it must have noticed when it went too long being from their side and would either come charging back to them or stand waiting for them to catch up. It was surprisingly well-behaved, Loki had to admit. Still, every time it would disappear out of sight Loki couldn't help the way his stomach clenched with worry.

"So," Bucky said, steering the conversation back on track once they'd taken a seat on an empty bench beneath an ash tree that was rapidly shedding its leaves, "first problem's solved; what else you got?"

"What would we do with the dog if we were to go away on vacation?"

"When do we ever do that?"

Well Loki had taken Bucky to Paris for a week about a month or so into their relationship, after Bucky had mentioned that he'd never been to Europe. They'd never had the time to get away together since, though.

"I am due for some time off work..." Loki started, and Bucky scoffed, perhaps louder than he'd intended. Regardless, his smile was long gone when Loki glanced over at him. The amount of time Loki spent at work was definitely still a touchy subject.

But thankfully Bucky didn't venture down that well-trodden path. "Steve and Peggy wouldn't mind taking it for a week or two," he replied instead. "They've already got the puppy, so it's not like they don't know what they're doing."

"And if they manage to conceive? They won't want to look after another dog while they're struggling with a newborn."

"Sam, then. He's sad and lonely — he'd love it. Or there's your brother," he added.

"Jane's allergic."

"Doesn't that go down as another plus, then?"

There was a knowing glint in his eye when he looked back at Loki. And Loki had to give him that one. He and his sister-in-law had a long and storied history of... well, not exactly seeing eye to eye, to put it lightly.

"Next," Bucky said.

Loki paused in thought for a moment. "Being restricted to pet-friendly buildings would give us quite the headache should we ever need to find a bigger apartment." He was reaching, he knew, though that wasn't the part Bucky was focused on.

"Why would we need a bigger apartment?" he said, yet from the look in his eye he knew exactly the thoughts Loki hadn't put voice to.

It was just as well, too. Before Loki could reply the dog came running back towards them and thrust the slime-covered stick it had had in its mouth into Loki's lap.

"Oh, you little shit," Loki said as Bucky laughed beside him.

They ended up staying out much longer than was probably necessary, playing with that disgusting stick — however reluctantly on Loki's part — until the dog finally tired of it, before strolling back through the park, simply enjoying the break from the sprawling concrete of the rest of the city. By the time they'd eventually begun to head home the sky was growing dark. Whether it was down to the promise of more rain or the nights gradually drawing in, it was difficult to tell.

"This is nice," Bucky said, leaning in to Loki's side again just as their building crept into view. "When was the last time we just went out for a walk together?"

"Thor's birthday," Loki answered, and Bucky snorted in response.

"That does not count."

Granted, Loki's memories of it — and much of the night, really — were clouded with alcohol, though he and Bucky had been walking through the city together at the end of the party, he remembered that part clearly. If only his memories of the right way back to their apartment had been as vivid.

"Why wouldn't that count?"

"'Cause we were stumbling home drunk." He smiled back at Loki. "Though maybe we should do that more often, too."

A smile worked its way across Loki's own face in return, before he remembered Bucky mentioning a bar opening up nearby. It must have been well over two months ago by now that they'd had that conversation. "Did you ever go to that new bar in the end?" he said. Loki had said they'd go once Bucky had told him about it, though he hadn't had time to follow up on that promise. Bucky had probably gone without him since.

"Yeah, I went with Sam a couple of weeks ago," he said. "It was kinda pretentious. You'd probably like it, though."

"Thanks," Loki said with a wry smile.

It was then that the dog seemed to realise they were nearing home, and pulled in Loki's grip until they'd reached the entrance to their building. As soon as they were back in the apartment and Loki had unclipped its leash it went and curled up on the couch.

"Make yourself at home, please."

In response, the dog lifted its head just enough to stare back at Loki for a moment before settling down happily again.

Bucky was struggling to repress a smile when Loki glanced in his direction. Of course he was. Loki chose to ignore that, though. "Are you hungry yet?" he said.

"I could eat."

Loki nodded and headed into the kitchen to make a start on dinner. It wasn't long before he encountered a slight problem.

"Do you know what you're doing?" Bucky said from the doorway as Loki stood staring at the groceries he'd bought specially that morning, now spread across the worktops, and wondering where to start.

"Yes."

Bucky stared back at him, unconvinced. "Want me to call your mom?"

"No." He wasn't about to let his mother know that he was almost thirty years old and still struggling with meals more complicated than simply heating something in the microwave. Perhaps he should have let Bucky cook them pasta for dinner again.

Loki slid the bag of potatoes across the counter towards Bucky. He might as well make use of him if he was going to stand there acting as one thoroughly unhelpful spectator. "Here," he said. "Start scrubbing."

Bucky sighed, but he snatched up the bag and crossed the room to the sink without argument, and after more effort than it really should have taken, as well as more than a few bursts of laughter at their own ineptitude, they finally managed to create something more or less edible. It didn't taste nearly as good as Loki would have hoped, but three hours later neither he nor Bucky had started to feel ill, so he probably hadn't given them both food poisoning. That was a plus.

"Has Saturday night television always been this dismal?" Loki said, peering up from his book while Bucky flicked through the channels in search of something to watch.

"Probably," Bucky replied. "Maybe we just never noticed 'cause we were never really here to watch any of it."

Loki hummed, shifting where he was curled under Bucky's arm as he did so. He didn't quite succeed in making himself more comfortable, though he was enjoying the closeness too much to move to the other end of the couch. "I suppose most people have better things to do on a Saturday night than stay in watching television."

"We could go out if you want."

"What about that one?" Loki said as he glanced over at the dog. It was sat on the floor at the side of the couch, still sulking because Loki had moved it to take its place cuddled at Bucky's side.

"You don't think we could leave him on his own for a few hours?"

"I wouldn't want to risk it." The last thing he'd feel like doing after going out for what would certainly turn into too many drinks was coming back to find the apartment destroyed by a lonely dog.

"Next week, then," Bucky said. "If you don't need to work."

"I'm sure they can cope without me for another weekend."

Bucky smiled at that. "We could go out for some drinks, some dancing; come back here and—"

"We are not scheduling sex," Loki cut in before Bucky could finish his sentence. "We are not that dull yet."

Bucky laughed while he turned back to the TV. "I'm calling it: there's nothing on." He switched it off with a sigh and checked his watch before glancing down to the dog, who immediately perked up at having Bucky's attention once again. "Guess we should take you out to empty the tanks before bed."

"Here; I'll go," Loki said, getting to his feet before Bucky had time to move. He didn't know why he offered, really, though it was nice to have an excuse to simply wander through the city. This time of night Loki was usually just leaving work, too tired and stressed to want to do anything more than get home as quickly as possible, yet now he was being forced to stop every half a dozen paces while the dog scent-marked everything it could, Loki actually had time to appreciate how lovely the city looked all lit up.

There was no sign of Bucky when Loki stepped back into the apartment. Loki wouldn't have thought he'd go to bed just yet. He crossed towards the bedroom, the dog at his side all the while, and pushed the door open to find Bucky lighting the candles on the dresser. There were already a handful more flickering away on the nightstands.

"What's all this?" Loki said, though he had a good idea already.

Bucky gave a nonchalant shrug in response. "It's been a nice day," he said, taking a step closer as Loki moved farther into the room in turn. "I figured we could end it on a high note."

Now Loki was hardly going to refuse, was he? He smiled and let Bucky close the last few inches between them to catch his lips in a slow, deep kiss, hands roaming over one another's bodies as they lost themselves in it.

"First things first," Loki said, ever so slightly breathless, once they'd pulled back from each other's mouths. He reached down for the makeshift dog bed still folded at the side of their own, and dragged it out of the bedroom. The moment the dog had followed to investigate, Loki closed the door behind it, ignoring the loud huff he earned in response as he and Bucky sank down onto the bed together.

***

Loki grimaced when a cacophony of blaring car horns outside dragged him violently back to consciousness. He rolled onto his side and pulled the covers over his head, willing himself to fall asleep again. That was when he realised he wasn't waking alone as he usually did; Bucky was still fast asleep beside him.

So much for that military discipline. He had had quite the strenuous night, though, Loki supposed.

He smiled to himself and reluctantly climbed out of bed, glaring over at the windows as he headed into the bathroom. Bucky still hadn't moved by the time Loki returned a few minutes later. Loki stood watching him for a moment, enjoying the rare sight, before the sound of the dog whining on the other side of the bedroom door gave him an idea.

Loki opened the door just enough to poke his head into the living room, and at the sight of someone after a night spent alone, the dog leapt up from its bed and came running over, tail wagging furiously. "Where's Bucky?" Loki whispered as he pushed the door back fully to let the dog charge inside.

It leapt straight up onto the bed, sniffing at the lump under the covers until it found Bucky's face to start licking him. Bucky swore in response and threw his arms out to try and stop the onslaught while Loki cackled. He was awake now, that was for sure.

"You're a dick, Loki," Bucky said, still barely coherent, once he'd managed to wrestle the dog away from his face.

"Oh, yes."

But he'd take pity on Bucky, if he had to.

"Come on," he said to the dog as he struggled to hold in his laughter, "I suppose we should feed you."

It wriggled from under Bucky's arm and followed Loki back out of the bedroom while Bucky murmured something Loki didn't catch. No doubt it was something he wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of, anyway, and another wide smile spread across Loki's lips at the thought as he gave the dog its breakfast.

Once it had finished eating it followed Loki as he crossed to the dining table to eat his own breakfast, resting its head on Loki's lap the moment he'd sat down, and Loki had to catch himself before he started stroking the dog's head while he ate. He shook his head and reached for his coffee to occupy his free hand, and the dog slunk away with a huff. It soon forgave Loki, though, when he finished his breakfast and got ready to take it out for a walk.

In hindsight, Loki really should have left it for Bucky to do.

It had looked to be quite sunny outside when he'd peered through the living room windows before leaving, though as he made his way across the lobby towards the entrance, a wave of bitterly cold air washed over him through the open door. Loki buttoned his coat and folded his arm across his chest to keep the cold at bay, his mood already souring. And that was before he stepped outside and looked up to see a blanket of black clouds approaching.

That would teach him for not bothering to check the weather forecast before leaving the house.

"Right," he said as he glanced down at the dog, staring back up at him as if it could understand every word Loki was saying, "how about you do your business as quickly as possible so we can get back inside?" Knowing his luck, though, the dog would do the opposite.

Loki was just looking back up to set off when a brand new, clearly expensive sports car pulled up not far from them. He and Bucky lived in a nice building, certainly, but it wasn't nice enough that you'd expect to find luxury cars pulling up outside very often. Loki's question was answered — though he only ended up with more to show for it — when he recognised the driver as Happy Hogan, his ex's lackey-cum-chauffeur. Sure enough, the passenger door opened and Tony Stark stepped out onto the sidewalk.

"Good, you are here," he said as he laid eyes on Loki. He was dressed sharply for a Sunday morning; probably on his way to some important breakfast or other. Or just getting in from a night on the town.

"How do you know where I live?"

Loki could put that together himself, actually; he did technically work for Stark industries now, so the employee records of his old firm would have been passed along in the merger. But still, that didn't explain why Tony would go rooting through them to find Loki's address.

Tony didn't answer the question, his attention focused on the dog pulling in Loki's hand to get moving. "When'd you get a dog?"

"Well..." Loki began, gazing past Tony's shoulder to where one of the posters Bucky had put up was hanging precariously to a street lamp, weather beaten and likely illegible by now.

"I thought you hated dogs," Tony went on before Loki could explain the situation.

"I don't hate dogs." No more than he hated anything else, at least. "Are you going to explain what you're doing turning up unannounced at my home first thing on a Sunday morning?"

"New military contract," he replied, handing Loki the thick file in his hand. Loki flicked open the manila folder to briefly skim the first page. "It's been looked over already, but I want to be positive we haven't missed anything. I need you to make sure it's all above board one last time before I sign it."

He'd never shown this much care in the past — though after it had turned out Stark Industries' creations had been ending up in the wrong hands, it was probably right for Tony to be more cautious these days. Loki didn't see what it had to do with him, though.

"Is there some reason no other member of your legal team can do this for you?"

"I thought you'd be more agreeable," he replied with his most charming smile, and Loki rolled his eyes at him. That was probably the nicer way of saying that Loki was the only one who'd tolerate being given more work to do on what was meant to be his day off.

"When are you expected to have signed this?" he said, closing the folder again before the pages could be battered by a gust of wind.

"Monday lunchtime."

"Then it can wait until Monday morning." Loki handed the file back and brushed past Tony. "I'll see you tomorrow, Tony."

But that wasn't enough to get rid of him. Tony had always been nothing if not persistent, after all. He jogged to catch up with Loki until Loki stopped and turned back to face him with a sigh. "You mean you don't want the satisfaction of being the one to swoop in and save the day?" Tony said.

"Not as much as I want to enjoy my weekend off," he replied, and Tony looked back at him sceptically.

"That doesn't sound like you at all."

He shrugged. "I'm trying something new."

Tony glanced back up at Loki's building, but before he could say anything else, Happy climbed out of the car, a frustrated expression on his face. Loki couldn't remember ever having seen him look any different.

"Boss," he called to Tony, and tapped at his wristwatch impatiently.

"Well duty calls," Tony said, turning back to Loki and offering him the contract once again. "In case you change your mind?"

"Fine," Loki huffed as he took the file and tucked it under his arm. "But I'm not promising anything."

"Yeah, yeah." He waved a dismissive hand, already heading back to his car. "My office, first thing tomorrow morning," he called, before slipping back into the passenger seat.

Loki sighed and shook his head as he watched the car weave back into the traffic. He didn't have long to reflect on Tony's audacity, though. A drop of rain hit Loki's cheek, and he gazed up to the sky to see the clouds almost directly overhead.

"Great," he said to himself. It definitely seemed the bad weather would be with them for the season now. Less than a week of it and Loki was sick of the rain already; he'd be miserable by the end of the year. It was hardly his ideal way to be reminded of home.

He turned up the collar of his coat and hunched his shoulders to keep the rain from trickling down the back of his neck as he finally set off. Luckily it remained more or less dry during their admittedly shortened walk, the occasional spot of rain littering the sidewalk and soaking into the outer fabric of Loki's coat, and when they turned back onto Loki and Bucky's block Loki quickened his steps further, keen to get inside before the clouds burst.

Bucky was curled on the couch when Loki stepped back into the apartment, his hair still damp from the shower and a mug of steaming, strong-smelling coffee in his hands. He let out an oversized yawn while Loki let the dog free to head straight to Bucky's side and greet him again, a little more calmly this time, which Bucky no doubt greatly appreciated.

"Still feeling sluggish?" Loki said with a smile as he crossed the room. "Is sex too much strain for you these days, old man?"

"I'm just out of practice." He dropped his head back against the top of the couch and Loki leant forward, one hand gripping the backrest to support himself as he pressed a soft kiss to Bucky's forehead.

"We should rectify that at once."

Bucky hummed happily in response, before his eyes landed on the folder still tucked under Loki's arm. "What's that?"

"Stark dropped it off for me to look over."

Bucky bristled at the mention of Tony's name. "He was here?" he said, his smile fading. "How does he know where we live?"

"I dread to think."

He tossed the papers onto the coffee table before kicking off his shoes and rounding the couch to settle in at Bucky's side. "Well that was good timing," he said, perhaps in a deliberate attempt to steer the conversation back towards safer ground, while he looked out at the rain now hammering against the windows as the city was subjected to another downpour.

All the while Bucky's eyes stayed fixed on him. "You're not going to read it?" he said.

"I told Tony it could wait until tomorrow." Now that Loki had it, though, part of him was anxious to start leafing through it, if only to cut down on the amount of work he'd have to look forward to tomorrow after taking the whole weekend off.

"So it's not urgent?"

"Everything's urgent at that place," Loki said, fighting to keep his voice casual and staring pointedly ahead instead of meeting the growing look of amusement on Bucky's face. "But it can wait."

Finally a soft laugh burst from Bucky's lips. "Just read it, Loki," he said. "You're not fooling anyone; I know you're dying to look through it."

"I thought my working all the time was a problem."

"Yeah, it is, but you're gonna bug the hell out of me if you spend the rest of the day wishing you could take a look."

Oh, thank goodness for that. Loki kissed Bucky again and reached for the contract, making himself comfortable against Bucky's chest as he started reading and Bucky draped an arm across his shoulders.

He didn't expect to find anything out of the ordinary, really, but Loki read through it carefully regardless, absorbed in the pages until he felt a soft vibration at his hip. He shifted to give Bucky some space while he reached into his pocket for his cell phone.

"It's Steve," he said, and climbed to his feet. "Back in a sec."

He disappeared into the bedroom as he answered the call, pushing the door to behind him so Loki could continue reading in peace. Loki sat forward, spreading the contract open on the coffee table to highlight passages to look over again with a more thorough eye later, and after only a minute or so Bucky returned.

Loki glanced over his shoulder to look at him while he reclaimed his seat on the couch. "Is everything all right?"

"Yeah. He and Sam were gonna go to the movies; wanted to know if I was in."

"And you said no?" Loki didn't know why he bothered asking; the way Bucky was settled back in among the cushions, bundled in his hoodie with a knee propped up to his chest, said in no uncertain terms what his plans for the rest of the day were. But it was a surprise, nonetheless.

Bucky pulled a disinterested face in response. "It's nice just spending the weekend in," he said. "Besides, I'm not sure I trust you alone with the dog all afternoon."

"I could have taken it to a shelter any number of times already this weekend, and I haven't," Loki said, his gaze darting back from the dog curled up half asleep beside the coffee table to Bucky staring back at him. "I think that makes me highly trustworthy."

Bucky's phone rang again while Loki spoke, and Bucky glanced at the number on the screen curiously before answering. Loki didn't even bother to look back down at his papers again, instead focusing all of his attention on Bucky's one-sided conversation.

"Yeah, he's still here," he was saying, halfway to the bedroom again before he stopped to look back at the dog. "No; white paws, sorry... Yeah. I hope you find him."

He hung up and sank back down onto the couch, dejection slipping across his features. Loki didn't have to ask what that was about.

"You know, I've been thinking," he started, "two days really isn't much time for someone to claim it." Bucky looked back up at him, his interest piqued by Loki's words, and Loki went on, despite his more rational side telling him not to. "The owners might not have seen the posters yet. There might not even be many left, considering the weather we've been having."

"What are you suggesting?"

Loki shrugged and pursed his lips. "Keeping the dog here for another few days couldn't hurt. But then it's definitely going to a shelter," he added sternly when Bucky beamed back at him.

He should have known as soon as the words left him that that dog would never end up setting foot inside a shelter.


End file.
